What's Gonna Make You Fall
by CassyR5
Summary: "I will never leave your side. And you know how?" He took her hand and placed it over his heart. "This is how." Austin shows Ally it's okay to fall in love again. One-shot.


**Summary: "I will never leave your side. And you know how?" He took her hand and placed it over his heart. "This is how." Austin shows Ally it's okay to fall in love again. One-shot.**

**A/N: So I recently became obsessed with the song "Fall" by Justin Bieber (again) and I decided to attempt to write a one-shot based off of it. It's a little AU, though there are some parts that mention things that happened on the show, but this doesn't take place at any specific time during it. But if I'm being honest, I'm actually really pleased with how this turned out. Hopefully you'll feel the same way.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Austin & Ally or "Fall" by Justin Bieber.**

* * *

_well, let me tell you a story about a girl and a boy. he fell in love with his best friend. when she's around, he feels nothing but joy_

He's falling. He knew he shouldn't, that this thing he's feeling could ruin everything, but he couldn't help it. He was falling for her and he didn't know how to stop it. Truth be told, he wasn't sure he wanted to.

It didn't take long, honestly. Spending all that time together, alone, doing what they both love. It's easy to get along, easy to become attached. She's fun, she's sweet. She laughed at his jokes (even if they were really terrible - and as much as he pretended to hate the jokes, secretly he loved them). Really, how could anyone have expected him _not_ to fall for her?

The day he fell, though (or at least realized how he felt - when he thought about it, he thought that he may have felt that way for a long time and just didn't want to admit it), it was actually a pretty normal day - save for the major epiphany he was about to have.

Him and Ally were writing in the practice room as usual when, as they were writing, their hands touched on the piano. Normally, they just brushed this off, but for some reason, this time it felt different.

Ally's phone rang as soon as this happened, and the hand touching his moved to pick it up. As expected, it was her boyfriend (who, long story short, she met in the mall. She'd had a crush on the guy for a while before finally gaining to courage to talk to him, and he eventually asked her out).

She turned to Austin. "Is it alright if I take this?" she asked.

Not being able to say no to her, he shrugged and said, "Sure," and with that she was up and out of the room. The door closed, and suddenly it felt oddly empty in the practice room, which was weird for Austin. With all the music surrounding him, he almost never felt alone in there, even if he was, quite literally, by himself. And there was also this weird feeling in the pit of his stomach at the thought of Ally leaving him in the middle of songwriting to talk with her boyfriend. It wasn't the first time she'd done that, and he was certain it wouldn't be the last.

That last part bothered him suddenly. They were trying to work, shouldn't personal phone calls be put on hold until later? And she saw the guy all the time, couldn't a simple phone call wait? Wasn't writing more important?

He suddenly felt angry at her, and he didn't know why. When she came back into the practice room, apologizing for leaving, the anger lessened, but as she got talking about the song they were working on - a love song, for once - it hit him what just happened.

He was jealous. Jealous of Ally's boyfriend for always being put before Austin. And he was jealous because he liked her. Austin liked Ally.

* * *

_but she was already broken, and it made her blind. but she could never believe that love would ever treat her right_

It didn't last, that relationship - her first real relationship, too. It broke both their hearts - her's because of the pain, his seeing her so broken.

He was happy for her when she first got into the relationship - encouraged it, even. She was still in the relationship when he realized his feelings. You'd think he'd be thrilled to find out that they're over. But he's not that type of guy. And as he said before, he couldn't stand seeing her so broken.

It wasn't a simple break up, either. The guy started seeming distance a few weeks before it happened. She didn't question it, thinking he just wanted some space, until she saw him kissing some random girl in his truck. She would've walked away if he hadn't seen her. She basically screamed at him through her tears, running straight home and calling Austin. He couldn't handle not being able to comfort her in person, so they met up at Sonic Boom.

"I just can't believe he'd ch-cheat on me," she said in between sobs to him that night in the practice room. His arm was around her in a comforting way, and she kept resting her head on his shoulder and taking it off to talk.

He rubbed her back lightly. "I don't either," he said quietly. Her head was on his shoulder again. "If it's any consolation, he's missing out on a lot. You're just too awesome for him." She chuckled at that. "But trust me when I say I know you'll get through this. Heartbreak doesn't last forever, or else no one would ever be happy. Everything will be okay."

She sat up to meet his gaze. "How do you know that?"

"Because I know you. You're Ally Dawson! You can get through anything," he said.

She smiled. It was a small smile, not quite reaching her eyes, but it was a start. "Thank you, Austin. You're the best." She wrapped her arms around his shoulders, hugging him tight.

When she pulled back, he jokingly said, "Just you watch, you'll be swooped up by a different guy in no time."

She laughed. "Yeah, I doubt it. I think I'm gonna just give up on love for a bit, or maybe forever. It can be stressful at times."

She had no idea just how much he agreed with her. But he didn't say anything, and just allowed her to rest her head quietly on his shoulder again. He looked down at her and kissed her lightly on the top of her head. She shifted but didn't say anything, probably thinking of it as another comforting gesture.

He wished it could mean more than that.

* * *

_did you know that I loved you, or were you not aware? you're the smile on my face, and I ain't goin' nowhere_

He almost said it once, how he really felt. And it terrified him.

They were working on some new music in the practice room. Austin had a few good ideas for the lyrics, and suddenly he'd written practically a whole verse (with Ally's help, of course, but his main idea was still there).

She wrote down the words, impressed. "Wow, Austin, these are some really good lyrics," she said.

He smiled, proud of himself. "Thanks. I try."

She sighed, putting the pencil down to start playing again. He stopped her when he noticed her sudden sad expression.

"Hey, what's wrong?" he asked.

She glanced at him for a brief second before turning back to the piano. "Nothing, it's stupid."

"I doubt that," he replied. When she continued to say nothing, he said, "Come on, Ally. You know you can tell me anything."

"I know," she started. "It's just...one day you're gonna be able to write a great song all on your own. Without any help. Without any of _my_ help. One day you're just...not gonna need me anymore," she said.

Austin looked at her in shock. He'd never heard her say anything like that before. Why was she suddenly doubting their partnership?

"Where is this coming from?" he asked.

She shrugged. "I don't know. I mean, you've practically written this whole song on your own."

"Ally, just because I can write a song - which, trust me, will probably never happen - I'm still gonna need you."

"No, you won't -" she started.

"Yes, I will," he cut her off. "And even if I didn't _need_ you, Ally, I wouldn't want to do this without you."

"Really?"

"Well, yeah. I -" He stopped himself short. _I love you_, he was about to say. But they weren't there yet in their friendship, were they? And even if they were, is that how she would interpret it? As friendship? He wasn't sure that's how he meant it.

"You what?" she asked.

"I...I just love spending time with you, that's all," he rephrased. Better to wait, he thought. It wasn't time yet.

* * *

_I'm here to make you happy, I'm here to see you smile. I've been wanting to tell you this for a long while_

All he's ever wanted for her was for her to be happy. To put a smile on her face is one of the things he loved doing most in the world. He thought maybe it was finally time to tell her how he really felt about her. Especially when she was anything but happy.

She'd just gotten a call from her mom that day. Ally's birthday was coming up in a few weeks and her mom was in Africa working. She was supposed to come home in time for her birthday. But things changed. By the time she got around to buying the ticket, the only ones available would mean arriving after it. So she figured maybe it was better if she waited to celebrate until she came home after her work was finished. It wouldn't be for another month, but it was better than nothing, she thought.

Ally didn't agree so much.

Austin didn't know much about Ally's mother, just that she was a writer and spent a lot of time travelling. It was one of the reasons her parents got a divorce, she once told him. While her mother wanted to see the world, her dad preferred the safety - and inexpensiveness - of staying in town to work. So, her mother travelled. Her dad started Sonic Boom. Eventually, they grew apart and decided it was easier for them if they stayed that way. So they divorced.

Ally had never told him so, but he got the feeling that, as much as she loved her mother, a small part of her resented her for leaving the family to travel, only visiting on her rare breaks. Even then, what she told him that day she got the phone call still surprised him.

He walked into the practice room, ready to start writing, only to find Ally sitting in one of the chairs by the piano, silently crying.

Quickly he rushed to her side. "Ally, what's wrong?" he asked.

She looked up in surprise, not having heard him come in. She looked down at her phone in her hands. "N-nothing. I'm fine."

"Ally."

"What?"

"You're crying."

"So?"

"Crying is not fine."

She sighed. "Okay, so maybe I'm not fine."

He moved the other chair next to her and sat down. "So? What's bothering you?"

She lifted up the hand holding her phone. "I, uh, just got a call from my mom. Concerning my birthday."

This wasn't going to be good. "What'd she say?" he asked slowly.

She wasn't meeting his gaze when she spoke, and just kept staring at her hands in her lap. "She, uh, she can't come."

"What?"

She shrugged. "She can't make it. Something about no available tickets and waiting until she visits next month, I don't know." She sighed. "Either way, she's, uh, she's not coming."

He couldn't believe what he was hearing. "Not coming? To your seventeenth birthday? But this is huge, she can't miss it."

"I think you're thinking sixteen, Austin. Or eighteen. There's nothing special about turning seventeen. Clearly," she added bitterly.

"Hey, it shouldn't matter how old you're turning. She should still be here for you," he said. "And even if she couldn't get tickets for the exact day, even a week later is better than a whole month."

"Yeah." She paused. "And you know what the worst part of this whole thing is? I'm not even surprised. Sometimes she just gets so caught up in her work that she forgets she still has a family until it's too late. If she'd just for _once_ remembered she had a daughter back home maybe she would've gotten the tickets on time."

He was surprised to hear her sound so angry at her mother. His mom had made him pretty mad at times, but he was sure he'd never thought of her that low.

"Ally," he said. She looked up at him again. "You know that's not true. Your mom - she still loves you, you know that. Yeah, maybe she does get caught up in her work at times, but who doesn't when they really enjoy it?"

"So you're defending her?"

"No, I'm just...trying to reassure you." He paused. "She still cares."

She looked down again. "I don't know, Austin. I just feel so alone right now."

"You're never alone, Ally," he said. "You always have me."

When she looked up again, he could tell he caught her off guard. "Really?" she asked.

He nodded, then reached out and took her hand in his. "Always."

Her gaze travelled to their entwined hands before back to his, a smile on her face. She tighten their grip. "Thank you."

He smiled, then suddenly felt nervous. She needed someone to be there for her that she could depend on, someone who wouldn't abandon her ever. Yeah, she knew Austin cared about her, but did she believe it? Even if she did, was it really the same? He may have been her best friend, but what if that wasn't enough? What if she needed something stronger than that? Maybe now was finally the right time to tell her the truth.

His hand was still in hers, but she was no longer looking at him. He moved their hands a little, hoping she'd at least look up at him. When she didn't, he moved his chair a little closer to her and said, "Listen, Ally, there's something I've been meaning to tell you for a while, and I'm not sure how you're gonna take it."

She looked up then. "What is it?" she asked. She sounded concerned, but maybe that had to do with how nervous he sounded.

_This is easier said than done_, he thought to himself. He wanted to tear his gaze off hers, tell her never mind, it's nothing, or that he forgot, but he couldn't. He had to go through with this. And there was no better way to go through with something than to blatantly state it right away.

"I like you," he said.

She chuckled. "I know. I like you, too."

He shook his head. "No, Ally, I mean that I _like_ you. As more than a friend. I have for a while."

Her face fell. "Oh," she said.

"Yeah." She didn't say anything for a minute, so he decided to continue. "I don't expect you to feel the same way. I just wanted you to know." He went to get up and leave, but his hand was still in hers and her grip became very tight.

"Wait," she said.

He sat back down. "What?"

She sighed. "I'm not exactly sure why you waited until now of all days to tell me this, Austin, but... I do appreciate the timing. I think if you'd told me any sooner I would've had a different answer."

"Answer?" he asked.

She nodded. "Because I think I feel the same way."

It really was the right time to tell her how he felt, after all.

* * *

_what's gonna make you fall in love? I know you got your wall wrapped all the way around your heart. don't have to be scared at all, oh, my love. but you can't fly unless you let your, you can't fly unless you let yourself fall_

Their first kiss was actually kind of awkward, if he's being honest.

They were in the practice room, playing around on the piano when their hands touched again. Unexpectedly, she stopped playing to look over at him. When he noticed this, he looked at her, too.

She had this look about her that he'd never really seen before on her. He thought maybe she'd done something to her hair, or maybe it was her make-up. Then it hit him. It wasn't her that was different, it was him. The way he viewed her was in an entirely different way than when he looked at his best friend. Because she looked exactly like she always did when they worked together every day. But she'd never looked more beautiful.

And then he was kissing her.

He hadn't really meant to, but she was just so stunning that it drew him in, and suddenly he found his lips on hers. He definitely caught her by surprise, he could tell. She started to ease into it a little, but he didn't get much of a chance to think about what it was like, because she was pulling back, and it was over.

"Sorry," he said right away.

She smiled a little. "It's alright," she said. "I just...I wasn't expecting that."

"I know, but I still shouldn't have done that."

"Austin, it's fine," she reassured. "Really."

He wanted to ask her about something that was bothering him, so he did. "Was...was that your first kiss?" Then he remembered the boyfriend, and tried to take it back. "Wait, never mind, of course it isn't, you dated that -"

She stopped him with a look, and he knew he wasn't supposed to bring him up.

"Actually, yeah. That was my first kiss," she answered.

"But what about -"

"He never tried to kiss me," she said. "It's kinda part of why I got so mad when I saw him...when I caught him that day. He was willing to kiss some random girl, but not his own girlfriend."

"Oh."

"Yeah."

"I'm sorry."

"It's okay."

He paused. It was silent between them, besides the random pressing of piano keys to attempt to fill the silence, before he spoke again. "Was it...was it alright? The kiss?"

She looked up at him again and shrugged. "It was okay, I guess. But like I said, I didn't expect it."

"Right." He paused. "Did you want to try again?"

That time she really looked at him, more aware of what he said. "What?" she asked in disbelief.

"Did you want to try again? At the kiss?"

She thought about that for a second before slowly nodding. "Yeah. I would."

"Okay."

Their second kiss was a lot better.

* * *

_well, I can tell you're afraid of what this might do, cause we got such an amazing friendship and that you don't wanna lose_

They weren't exactly dating. But they weren't exactly just friends anymore, either.

He never officially asked her out, despite the fact they kissed and knew they had feelings for each other - well, he knew. She still wasn't sure, which was probably one of the reasons why they still weren't really together.

He had a feeling he knew why she wouldn't admit it if she fell for him. She was afraid to. She wasn't joking when she said she was thinking of giving up on love after her last relationship. He couldn't blame her, really. It wasn't exactly a peaceful break up.

And then there was their friendship. They'd been best friends for such a long time, what if dating didn't work out? Would everything be awkward? And not to mention their music. They could ruin everything they've worked towards all because of some feelings.

But they'd been beating around the bush for some time, and all he really wanted was to just _talk_ to her about it. Unfortunately, she wasn't on the same page.

He brought it up to her once while she was working, and immediately she stopped him, practically freezing on the spot.

"Ally, we need to talk about this," he said.

"No, we don't," she said, her tone final, not meeting his gaze.

"Ally, please."

She looked up, noting the pleading in his voice. He wasn't going to give up, and she knew that. So she agreed.

"Fine. I'll meet you in the practice room in a few minutes."

He sighed in relief, thankful to finally get a chance to really figure out what they were. He smiled, and with a "Thank you," he headed upstairs to the practice room to wait.

She joined him five minutes later, closing the door behind her. He was already seated in his regular spot on the piano bench, so she joined him. He didn't fail to notice the extra distance she managed to put between them.

When he didn't say anything right away, she spoke. "So? What did you want to talk about?" she asked.

He sighed. "Us?" he replied. "Remember? I told you that just five minutes ago."

"Right," she muttered. She looked away from him, afraid to meet his gaze. He lightly placed his hand on her arm, drawing her back to him.

"Ally? Are you alright?" he asked cautiously.

She nodded slowly. "Yeah. I just don't really know what to say."

"Yeah... Come to think of it, I don't either."

"Then why did you wanna talk, huh?" she asked. "Why bring me up here when you had nothing prepared?"

"Because, Ally. I...I just wanna figure out what we _are_, okay? I know we never really established that we were in a relationship, but after that kiss... It seems hard to go back to being friends after something like that," he explained.

Clearly she wasn't expecting him to come out at her quite like that. She looked shocked, and he was hoping he was wrong when he thought she looked a little scared, too.

"I-I'm sorry, Ally," he said. "I didn't...I wasn't trying to freak you out or anything. I just want to know."

She nodded stiffly. "I know," she said quietly. "I understand."

He waited for her to continue, add something else, maybe even answer his question. But when she didn't, he got this awful feeling in the pit of his stomach, and his heart felt heavy in his chest, and he knew this wasn't going to end well. "Well?" he finally asked. "Do you have an answer? Do you think you know what we are?"

She finally met his gaze, and it was hard and unreadable. "I do have an answer, Austin. But I don't think it's the one you're looking for."

His face fell, and he knew he was right. "What do you mean?" he asked.

She shrugged. "I'm still trying to figure out how I feel, Austin. I care about you, but...I just don't think it's in the way you want me to."

"So, we're just friends, then," he said, not even bothering to form it into a question. He knew it was the truth.

"We're not _just_ friends, Austin, you know that. We never have been." She paused. "We've always been partners, and we've always been _best_ friends. Can't that be enough for now?"

He considered this. He really wanted to try at a real relationship with Ally. In his heart, he just _knew_ they were meant to be. But maybe he was wrong when he thought it was the right time to tell her how he felt. It may have seemed right at the time, but she still wasn't ready to love again, and he had to understand that. Besides, it wasn't like she was cutting him off. They were still friends. Everything would just have to go back to the way they were before he kissed her. He just wasn't so sure he knew how. But he would try. For her, he would try.

He managed to smile enough for her to believe he was fine. He nodded. "Yeah," he said. "Best friends and partners with you to fill both roles? That's all I'll ever need in life."

She smiled, then proceeded to wrap her arms around him in a hug. "Thank you," she whispered. "For understanding."

He pulled her closer. He wasn't letting go of this one any time soon.

* * *

_well, I don't wanna lose it either. I don't think I can stand sitting around while you're hurting, babe, so take my hand_

A few weeks went by, and things certainly did change between them. But not for the better.

At first it seemed like things actually would go back to normal. Songwriting sessions became fun again and they hung out like old times. He didn't even remember thinking about how beautiful she looked or how much he wanted to kiss her or hold her hand (okay, maybe once or twice, but it was a work in progress, and he thought he was doing fine). They were best friends and partners again, and he was content with that.

But happiness never seemed to last forever and somehow things became tense. He couldn't say when. It was as if one day everything was fine and the next it was like there was a wall between them. Songwriting sessions went from fun to awkward every time they touched on the piano or someone brought up an idea for a love song. Hanging out went from just like old times to stiff and quiet. They would take a break from their awkward songwriting session to grab something in the mall. They would try and talk, and sometimes one of them managed to break that fourth wall of silence, but most of the time, their laughter died down too quickly. They were losing each other, and they didn't know what to do about that.

They were trying to write a song when he noticed how she was playing. Austin knew Ally liked to play in minor keys more than major, but the melody she was playing was just so depressing, he knew something was up.

Gently he placed a hand over hers to stop her from playing. Actions like that had become very scarce between the two, so immediately, this got her attention. Slowly she looked up.

"Is something wrong?" he asked quietly.

She pulled her hand out from under his, shaking her head. "No, nothing's wrong. Why do you ask?"

"You're playing in minor keys again."

"So?"

"You only do that when you're upset."

She stopped herself from playing again, and moved her hands to her lap. She sighed. "You're right. Something is wrong."

"Well, what is it?" he asked.

She faced him. "It's us, Austin. Lately things have just been really weird between us and I don't know why."

He nodded. "I've been noticing the same thing."

"Well, what should we do?"

He thought about this for a second. Awkward things always seemed to happen between them when writing, and that definitely wasn't good. Maybe they just needed a break. Something to remind them of why they became partners in the first place, but still a break.

"Hey, what about that fair in town? Why don't we go check that out? Maybe even stay for the concert afterwards," he suggested.

She smiled at that, and for the first time in a while, it reached her eyes, too. She nodded. "Yeah, that sounds like it could be fun. When should we go?"

"Why not now?"

He stood up and held his hand out to her for her to take. She only gave it the quickest of glances before placing her hand in his and standing with him, their hands interlocked as they walked out of the room together.

* * *

_well, did you know you're an angel who forgot how to fly?_

Right away he knew going to the fair was a good idea. Immediately there was a smile on her face, and she was practically dragging him everywhere she wanted to go.

"Whoa, slow down!" he told her with a laugh. She managed to stop and let him take a breather. As much as he wanted her to have fun, he thought it might be easier to have fun while taking their time.

She laughed a little awkwardly, but it was a laugh all the same (and adorable, but he tried not to think too much like that, despite the fact they've continued to hold hands since arriving). "Sorry. I just really wanna do everything here."

"I agree, but maybe we should pick something first? Instead of just running everywhere," he suggested.

She nodded in agreement. "Okay, so...what do you wanna do?" she asked.

He shook his head. "You pick."

"Oh. Okay." She paused to think for a second. "Um, how about...a game?"

"A game," he repeated.

"Yeah, a game. You know, one of the stations where you can throw darts at balloons or use squirt guns or -"

"I know what a game is," he said with a laugh. "Either way, okay. Let's do it."

She smiled, and this time he let her drag him to station after station, playing with or against her at each one. Her smile never faltered once, even if she did lose. And if he managed to win a prize, he gave it to her (which was saying a lot; he became attached to this little teddy bear fairly quickly, but he was willing to give it to her anyway. Who knows, maybe someday she'd give it back to him as a thank you gift for helping her get over some other paralyzing fear). Even when they took a break from games to eat and he accidentally got ketchup on her shirt, she just laughed it off. She paid him back and things got a little messy, but she was having fun, and that was what he wanted for them.

Even with all the cleaning up they had to do, they managed to make it to the concert in time. That may have been his favourite part of the night. Dancing to fun songs, her hand in his the whole time; she resembled an angel, glowing and free. The lights hit her at just the right angle to light up her beautiful smile, and he couldn't take his eyes off her. He wished he could teach her how to fly like the angel she was - when it came to love, that is. He had a feeling this night changed the both of them together, but not for worse this time. And maybe, they could be even better than they ever were.

* * *

_did you know that it breaks my heart every time to see you cry? cause I know that a piece of you's gone every time he done I'm the shoulder you're crying on, and I hope by the time that I'm done with this song that I've figured out_

Things between them were better, for the most part. Songwriting stopped being awkward. Hanging out was a blast. They didn't cross the line between friends and more than that often - it was still a touchy subject - but if they did, they were able to handle it well, almost ignoring it most of the time.

There was another touchy subject, though, that seemed to get in the way a bit. Which is what Austin encountered when he walked into the practice room that day. He was planning to take Ally out to see a new movie (as friends). He wasn't planning on having to comfort her beforehand.

The minute he stepped inside, the room was filled with the sound of minor keys being played. And minor keys meant one thing. When he saw Ally, he knew he was right.

He went straight to his spot beside her at the piano. She didn't seem to notice him when he sat down, so he said, "Ally? Wanna tell me what's wrong?"

She didn't stop playing right away as she looked up at him. Once her gaze met his, she immediately broke down, throwing her arms around his waist and crying into his chest. He put his arms around her and held her close. He let her cry without saying a word, only occasionally stroking her hair or rubbing her back to remind her that he was still there.

Eventually she managed to pull back, rubbing her eyes as she did so. When she finally stopped and looked at him, the first thing she did was laugh and then say, "I'm sorry."

He looked at her confused. What did she have to be sorry about? "Why?"

"About your shirt," she said, gesturing to it.

He looked down at it. He didn't notice any change in it visibly, but he could tell it was wet in some spots from her tears. He shrugged. "It's okay, it's just a shirt." He paused. "You, however, are definitely not okay." He took her hands in his. "Are you well enough to tell me why?"

She took a deep breath, then nodded. "Yeah." She paused, tightening her grip on his hands. "It's just...it's my mother."

He nodded, remembering that her mom came back last week. "Oh, yeah, how did that go?" Immediately he mentally slapped himself. If she's crying, then probably not so well.

She shrugged. "It was alright, I guess. It wasn't her visit that was really the problem. It was her leaving."

His eyes widened in shock. "Leaving? But she was only here a week."

She nodded. "I know. But, she, uh, she had to go apparently. Duty calls, she said." She paused before continuing on. "Before she left, she told me that she might not see me very often anymore. I'm seventeen now and I should be able to take care of myself without a mother to guide me."

"You'll always need a mother," he said quietly.

"That's what I told her. But she wouldn't listen. She said that..." She sniffled, and he knew this next part was what bothered her the most. He squeezed her hands lightly. She continued. "She said that both work and family were overwhelming her, and that it'd be easier to just focus on one thing at a time. So she chose work. She chose her work over her own family." She looked up. Tears were starting to fall again, but she powered through them. "She told me that she was _sorry_. Can you believe that? She was apologizing for practically walking out of my life. If she wanted me to believe that she was sorry, she shouldn't have ever left me. And now she's gone. She's gone and I-I don't know what to do."

He didn't even wait for her to fall to him, and just pulled her against his chest again as fresh tears spilled down her cheeks. She clung to his shirt, holding him close. Hearing her cry was one of the most heartbreaking things he's ever had to endure, and he wished so much that he could put an end to this torment she was going through, but he couldn't. He didn't know her mother. He didn't even know where she was. All he could do was be there for Ally, but he wanted to do more. He just didn't know what.

Slowly she moved herself from out of his arms, and she allowed him to wrap his arm around her, letting her head fall onto his shoulder.

"Hey. You gonna be okay?" he asked quietly, rubbing her arm.

She nodded a little. "I think so. It's not like I should be surprised, really. She's done worse."

"Worse than leave you without a mother?" he asked. "I can't imagine what's worse than that."

"Try altering your view on love, thinking everyone you care about is just gonna get up and walk out of your life for good," she said.

And suddenly he could imagine what was worse.

"I know you don't want to hear this, Austin, but that's why I can't be with you," she continued. "I trust you now, but what about later in life? How do I know you're not gonna leave me to further your own career without me? I don't. But maybe keeping my distance will lessen the blow if you do."

"Hey," he said, sitting up so he could meet her gaze. "Ally, you've gotta know that's not true. I'm always gonna need you, and I'd be crazy to think I could do anything better alone."

"You say that now, but what about in 10, 20 years? You can't predict the future," she said.

"You're right, I can't. But I don't have to to know that I will _never_ leave your side. And you know how?" He took her hand and placed it over his heart. "This is how. I care about you too much to even _think_ of leaving you. I -"

"Austin -"

"I love you, Ally. You _have_ to know that."

She sighed, removing her hand from under his. "I do know that, Austin," she replied. "God, I really do. But you have to know that I just can't say it back. Not right now."

He nodded. "I know. Trust me, I know."

She smiled again, and when he opened his arms, she leaned into them, allowing him to hold her and comfort her, their movie completely forgotten.

* * *

_I will catch you if you fall, I will catch you if you fall, I will catch you if you fall._

He learned that maybe sometimes it's better if they don't try writing a song while half awake - or half asleep, however you looked at it. Either way, working while tired didn't always end well.

They'd lost track of time, and after a while they'd lost track of ideas as well. As much as they wanted to keep writing, sleep was calling, and they were prepared to fall into it all too soon.

Ally was finally the one to call it quits.

"Austin, maybe we should stop for now. We're getting nowhere with this, and I'm exhausted," she said.

He nodded, a yawn escaping him. "You're right. Did you wanna stay the night or should we head home?"

She picked up her phone to check the time. She shrugged. "It's not too late to walk home."

"What time is it?"

"After 4."

His eyes widened. "Oh. Are you _sure_ you wanna walk home?"

She nodded. "Yeah, I should be fine."

"Okay..." he replied, slowly getting up from the piano bench. He waited for her to grab her things, thinking it'd be best to at least walk her home. He stood next to her as she packed away her book and her phone in her bag before turning around. As she did, though, she stumbled a little, bumping into Austin. Unfortunately, he wasn't aware of just how close he was standing beside her and instead of being able to steady her he ended up stumbling backwards. The next thing he knew he was falling to the ground, taking Ally with him.

For a second neither of them moved, not sure what exactly just happened and frankly, they were just too tired. But he was able to open his eyes to find Ally lying on top of him, her head buried in his chest. He wasn't sure if it was from exhaustion or embarrassment. Only when she started laughing awkwardly did he realize what it was.

She looked up at him. "I'm sorry about that," she said. "I wasn't paying attention and I'm really tired and you know I'm clumsy and -"

"Ally," he said, cutting her off mid-sentence. "It's okay. We're both at fault here."

She sighed. "Okay." When neither of them said or did anything, she continued with, "I should probably get off you now, shouldn't I?"

He nodded, promptly taking his hands away from around her waist from when he caught her. She pushed herself off him, but instead of standing, laid beside him on the ground. Cautiously he moved his arm around her shoulders, and she moved her head to rest on his chest.

"Maybe we should just fall sleep here, don't you think?" she asked quietly. Her eyes were threatening to close, and he could barely hear her speaking, despite how close she was to him.

He laid his head back down on the ground, pulling her a little closer to him. "Yeah, we should," he said. When he didn't hear a reply, he knew she was already sleeping. He closed his eyes and did the same.

* * *

_but if you spread your wings, you can fly away with me, but you can't fly unless you let your, you can't fly unless you let yourself_

They managed to head home before sleep took over the next day. As they were walking, though, she wanted to pause at the park across from her house. So he let her drag him over to an old, empty play park in the middle of the night with no explanation.

She sat down in the grass near the swing set, the hand in his pulling him next to her. They sat quietly, hand in hand, for a minute before she tilted her head up to look at the sky above.

"Lots of stars out tonight," she muttered.

He followed her gaze up. The sky looked as normal as ever to him, but he'd be lying if he didn't agree with her. He didn't look up very often, but he could somehow still see that something was different tonight. Thinking back to things being different, he wondered if maybe the sky wasn't all that different, but them instead. Maybe they'd somehow changed again without really realizing it.

He felt her move next to him and looked over to see her laying down in the grass. He followed suit, laying next to her, their shoulders touching. She held onto his hand lightly between them, breathing slowly. For a second he thought she'd fallen asleep, but when he looked over at her, her eyes were still open, staring up into the sky.

She took in a deep breath, then spoke. "Remember the other night in the practice room?" she asked. "When I accidentally fell on you?"

He laughed. "Yeah. And I was too tired to stay stable, so -"

"So we both fell to the floor," she finished for him, laughing as she did so. Suddenly they were both laughing, harder and harder with each second, curing into themselves and then each other. It was late and they were getting tired and people were probably sleeping, but they didn't seem to have a care in the world anymore as they just kept laughing.

Eventually, the laughter died down, and they were back to staring up at the night sky. This time, she was curled against him, her head against his chest, his arm around her. Just like the night before in the practice room, but at the same time, somehow it was different.

She broke the silence first. "Austin?"

"Yeah, Ally?"

"I think I fell for you then."

He chuckled. "You literally did."

She shook her head. "No, not literally - well, yes, quite literally, but I meant metaphorically as well."

That got his attention. He looked down at her against him. "Metaphorically?" he asked slowly.

She nodded. "Mm-hm."

"Oh." He paused. "So if I kissed you right now, would you regret it later?"

She shook her head, looking up and meeting his gaze. He didn't fail to miss her glance at his mouth beforehand. "No. I wouldn't."

Then and there he believed that third time really was the charm as he pressed his lips against hers gently, marking their third kiss. But he was sure he'd have to stop counting eventually. There wasn't a number nearly high enough for how many times he planned to kiss her for the rest of their lives.

* * *

_what's gonna make you fall in love? I know you got your wall wrapped all the way around your heart. don't have to be scared at all, oh, my love. but you can't fly unless you let your, you can't fly unless you let yourself fall in love. I know you got your wall wrapped all the way around your heart. don't have to be scared at all, oh, my love, but you can't fly unless you let your, you can't fly unless you let yourself fall_

They were no longer just friends and partners anymore. But this time, he could finally say they were better than that.

At first it was a little rocky. She knew how she felt, but she was distant, not sure what she could and couldn't do or say. It seemed her last relationship really did change her view on love, a lot more than he had anticipated. She grew out of this stage quickly, realizing that Austin was better than that.

Music wasn't as bad as they thought. Their first song was rough and needed work, but with time they were able to perfect it. After that, it was just as it was before. But better.

She wasn't kidding when she said love could be stressful, though. There were times when they weren't sure it was working, times when they thought they were over. They'd get into a fight and one of them would walk out of the room, only to come back a few hours later, apologizing like crazy for hurting them. They tried to never blame each other. They knew they were both at fault. And after it was over, they were okay again.

There were also times when they couldn't have been happier, when everything felt right in the world. A lot of the time that was doing what they did best - music. They' be sitting at the piano, writing, and he sometimes liked to watch her while she played, wondering how he got so lucky to land such a beautiful girl. After a while, she'd notice and look over at him, a nervous smile on her face. At first she questioned it.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" she would ask.

He'd reply with, "Because you're beautiful."

She'd shake her head at this, not wanting to believe him. But when she met his gaze again, she knew it was true, that he meant it, and so she'd lean up and kiss him.

After a while the questions stopped and she went straight to the kiss. Sometimes they got more kissing than writing done on days like these, but neither of them really cared. They were happy. By the end of the day, everything was perfect. And neither of them wanted to go back.

* * *

_I will catch you if you fall, I will catch you if you fall, I will catch you if you fall._

A month into the relationship, there was one thing missing, he noticed. He knew he didn't have to do it. In their hearts, they both knew what they were and they were happy. But he was a bit of a hopeless romantic, and in his mind, what kind of couple were they if they never went on a first date?

She was working when he asked her. He kept the tone of the question casual, saying, "Would you like to go out with me?" as if it was the sort of thing he said every day.

She chuckled, but instead of saying yes, replied with, "Aren't we already going out?"

"Well, yeah, but I mean on a real date. We've never done that," he explained.

She finally looked up. "Oh," she said. "Huh. You're right, we haven't been on a date yet."

When she didn't follow through with an answer, he said, "So...?"

She laughed, leaning in close. "Yes, I would love to go out with you, Austin."

He smiled, and proceeded to close the distance between them.

* * *

_if you spread your wings, you can fly away with me, but you can't fly unless you let your, let yourself fall_

Their first date couldn't have been better.

He knew she wasn't into seeing movies on a first date. "How can you expect to get to know the person if you can't even talk to them?" she told him. He told her they already knew each other, so what did it matter if they couldn't talk? But this was their first date, and she wanted to be able to get to know him in a different way than before. She wanted to go on a date with her boyfriend as if this was their first time together. He knew it was impossible for them to act like strangers on a date, but he still listened.

So he didn't take her to the movies, no matter how much he wanted to. Instead, he took her to dinner. There was a new diner open in the mall, and they both agreed that it was the perfect place for a first date. It wasn't all that fancy, but they still dressed up anyway. They definitely stood out in his suit and tie and her dress while everyone was wearing skinny jeans and graphic t-shirts, but they didn't care. They wanted to enjoy this date, to remember it well.

He was afraid things would be awkward, that going on a real date might signify that they were really a couple, and that that label would make them nervous. But it didn't. They ordered their food and talked as they did every day. A small part of him was hoping they could have a conversation that didn't involve music, to see if maybe they could learn something about each they didn't know like she wanted, but that was nearly impossible. They did learn new things, though. He learned that she wasn't a fan of people trying to feed her food, something he found out when he tried to do so. She allowed him to anyway, if only because it was their first date. But after the action was to be kept to a minimum. She learned that, as much as Austin seemed to be able to date girls left and right, he hadn't been on very many dates. Especially ones as thought up as the one he was on with Ally. It wasn't as if he didn't put in the same amount of effort with old ones; it was more so that none of them seemed to matter anymore now that he had her.

After dinner (and deciding who paid the bill - they ended up splitting it), he took her to the beach for a walk along the pier. He took her hand as they walked, sticking his other hand in his pocket. The sun was beginning to set as they reached the end of the pier, and they leaned against the railing to watch. She rested her head on his shoulder, taking in a deep breath.

"I have to say, as far as first dates go, this was pretty perfect," she said, tilting her head to rest her chin on his shoulder so she could look at him.

He looked at her, meeting her gaze. "Really?" he asked.

She nodded, smiling. "Yeah."

He smiled back. "I couldn't agree more," he replied. She lifted her head up a little to meet him halfway as he began to lean down, kissing her lightly. She placed her hand on his cheek to deepen the kiss a little before pulling back.

"Wasn't sure you'd let me kiss you on the first date," he said. She laughed, and he continued with, "Does that mean I can guarantee a second date?"

She pretended to think about this for a second. When he sighed loudly, she laughed again, knowing she was torturing him. "Of course I'll go on a second date with you, Austin."

"And a third?" he asked.

She moved her arms to on his waist. He turned to her, doing the same. She started leaning up, getting closer with every word. "Third, fourth, fifth." She paused just centimetres from his mouth. "However many you want."

He chuckled. "Sounds like a plan," he replied, closing the distance between them. The kiss was deeper than the first, and he held her close to him, not wanting to let go. Eventually they had to pull apart (breathing's kind of important). They smiled at each other before she wrapped her arms around him in a hug, resting her head on his chest. He did the same, lightly resting his chin on the top of her head. They looked out towards the sun as it set on the horizon.

He wasn't lying when he said that their first date couldn't have been better. But when he compared it to the rest of their dates that would quickly follow, it was only the beginning. He couldn't help but surprised as he found each day better than the last when he was with her, no matter what occurred. But he figured the feeling was mutual. Because he'd finally taught her that it was okay to love again. Heartbreak never did last, and they couldn't have been happier than when they were together.

* * *

**So yeah. It's kinda long for a one-shot, but I think it worked. Thank you for reading, and leave a review, maybe? :)**


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